Professor Huiqing (Jane) Zhou Awarded an NIH MIRA Grant
Assistant Professor Huiqing (Jane) Zhou has been awarded an R35 MIRA grant from the NIH National Institute of General Medical Sciences. The $1.95 million to the Zhou laboratory will support their research in developing methods to investigate fundamental questions in the human tRNA biology. MIRA, also known as the "Maximizing Investigators' Research Award" provides early-stage investigators with the support to achieve greater stability and flexibility in research, thereby promoting research productivity and creativity.
Boston College Chemistry Department Team Scores Big!
A team of 3 Boston College Chemistry graduate students, from the research group of Professor Peter Zhang, competed in the Nucleate Activator program. This non-profit training program pairs scientific trainees with business students to connect them with advisors, mentors, executives, legal support, and investors that are experienced in building biotech companies.
The BC Chemistry team, Metallosyn was joined by Celia Lette, an M.S. student in Biotech/Finance at Brown University. Second year Ph.D. students Mariah Tedder, Team Lead, Many Hemati and Landon Taylor, along with Ms. Lette and scientific advisor Professor Zhang competed in the Eco East track. Over the last six months, the teams attended weekly workshops with mentors on scientific risk, strategic fundraising, pitch deck development, and more designed to facilitate the transition from academic research to commercialization of scientific discoveries. Metallosyn, competing in the Eco East track, focused on sustainability, seeks to commercialize the bio-inspired catalyst library designed by Professor Zhang's lab, alongside future developments to apply the catalyst platform to challenging problems in sustainable chemistry. On May 18th, Metallosyn's technology was pitched in a series of presentations to judges that included start-up founders and venture capitalists. Metallosyn placed 2nd in the Nucleate Eco East track and was also awarded the Eco Scientific Excellence Award. They are contenders within the Nucleate Venture Prize competition and have plans to explore the Boston biotech sphere to continue pursuing the commercialization of their chemistry as a start-up company.
Professor Jia Niu Recipient of 2023 Camille Dreyfus Teacher-Scholar Award
Recognized for a commitment to teaching and outstanding scholarship, Professor Jia Niu has been named a 2023 Camille Dreyfus Teacher-Scholar. This prestigious award recognizes early career faculty and includes a $100,000 unrestricted award. To learn more about Professor Niu's research, visit his research group page. To learn more about his latest research "Cleaner, greener plastics from wood," click here.
Kyrsten Weissheier Receives Honorable Mention in NSF GRFP Program
The National Science Foundation awarded Kyrsten Weissheier an Honorable Mention in the Graduate Research Fellowship Program for her project, "Programmable Proximity-Driven O-GlcNAcylation of Histone Tails using CRISPR/Cas9." Kyrsten is a second year student in Professor Jia Niu's research group. The Graduate Research Fellowship Program is highly competitive and seeks to recognize students who have demonstrate the potential to make significant contributions to the field. Congratulations Kyrsten on this outstanding achievement!
Delilah Jewel Recipient of Engelhard Pingree Fellowship
The 2022-23 Morrisey College Graduate School of Arts & Sciences Engelhard Pingree Research Fellowship has been awarded to Delilah (Lily) Jewel. This honor recognizes a graduate student who has made a significant contribution to the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences’ research mission. Working
in the research laboratory of Professor Abhishek Chatterjee, Lily is the 1st
author on a paper appearing in Science and an upcoming paper in Nature Methods. In announcing the award., Dean Candace Hetzner mentioned Lily’s work involving innovative biomolecular research. For more
information on research in the Chatterjee lab, check out their website.
Collaborating to Advance Solar Energy Systems
5E Advanced Materials, Inc. has signed a sponsored research agreement with the Boston College Chemistry Department. The research will focus on the development of boron-based solar energy conversion materials. As countries look toward the decarbonization of the energy sector, the ability to capture, convert and store solar energy economically will be of increasing importance. Leading the effort in the Chemistry Department, Professor Shih-Yuan Liu stated, “The Department of Chemistry at Boston College has strong expertise in boron chemistry. We have tremendous synthetic capabilities for accessing boron-containing compounds. As such, the collaboration with 5E Advanced Materials makes sense as the company focuses on the element boron in the energy sector. We are very excited about the opportunity and look forward to commencing the project.”
Welcome Professor Alexis Grimaud
The BC Chemistry Department welcomes Professor Alexis Grimaud to the faculty. Formerly a CNRS researcher at the Collège de France, Paris, he earned his doctoral degree at University of Bordeaux France. Dr. Grimaud’s research will focus on the design of electroactive materials and the physical chemistry of liquid electrolytes applied to develop efficient electrochemical energy storage and conversion devices.
Professor Emeritus Mary Roberts Elected ASBMB Fellow
Professor Emeritus Mary Roberts has been elected a fellow of the American Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology. She joins a group of 28 prominent scientists representing the second class of fellows who are recognized for their outstanding accomplishments in research, education, mentorship and service to the scientific community. Read on BC News
Chia-Kuang (Frank) Tsung Graduate Fellowships
In honor of our late colleague, mentor, and friend, Frank Tsung, the Chemistry Department has established the Chia-Kuang (Frank) Tsung Graduate Research Fellowships. Each year, these fellowships will be awarded to graduate students who demonstrate outstanding achievement in their second-year oral exams. For the 2022-2023 academic year, these fellowships have been awarded to Yu Mu (Wang Group), Chintan Soni (Chatterjee Group) and Jing Wan (Hoveyda Group).
GRADUATE ADMISSIONS UPDATE
The GRE Requirement for Admissions to the Fall 2023 entering class is optional.
GRADUATE ADMISSIONS UPDATE
THE GRE REQUIREMENT IS OPTIONAL IF A WAIVER IS REQUESTED. TO REQUEST A WAIVER, PLEASE EMAIL DALE MAHONEY AT chemadm@bc.edu.
Chemistry Department Receives NIH Grant
The National Institute of Health has awarded the Chemistry Department $999,500 to purchase a CyroProbe-enabled (500 MHz) NMR Spectrometer. The insturment will be housed in the Department's Magnetic Resonance Center and is the first spectrometer of its kind at Boston College. It will replace a 30-year old model.
Cindy Lee Selected to Write Journal Article
Cindy Lee, a graduate student in the group of Professor Peter Zhang, has been selected by the editorial team of Chem to write a potential energy article to showcase her recent research paper in Chem. In addition, she shares her research experience in the group, offers personal perspective of a scientific life, and discusses her future career aspirations.
Donald J. White Teaching Excellence Awards
Congratulations to the Chemistry Department's Donald J. White Teaching Excellence Awardees:
Mario (Ricky) Alvarado, Kevin Byrne, Cristina Cheng, Casey Howshall, Wei-Shang (Victor) Lo and Shawn Ng.
Katherine Grasso receives Dean's Dissertation Award in Mathematics and Science
Katherine Grasso's doctoral thesis, "Resolving the Limitations of Genetic Code Expansion Platforms" is the 2021 recipient of the Dean's Dissertation Award in Mathematics and Science. A student in Professor Abhishek Chatterjee's group, Katie will be graduating this May.
The Chemistry Department Receives Record Number of NSF GRFP Honorable Mentions
The National Science Foundation (NSF) Graduate Research Fellowship Program (GRFP) recognizes outstanding work by STEM students early in their graduate careers. Graduate students Connor Gallacher, Gavin Giardino and Arianna Osgood received Honorable Mentions in the 2021 comptetion. Connor worked in the research group of the late Professor Frank Tsung. Gavin is in the Niu group and Arianna works in the Chatterjee group.
Additionally, former undergraduates, Enric Adillon and John Hoskin, who conducted research in the Byers and Liu groups respectively were also recognized. Enric is a Studying at CalTech and John at Princeton.
Chemistry Department Alum Makes the Case for Quantum Computing in Scientific American Article
Dr. Jeannette Garcia's (Ph.D. '12) opinion piece, "How Quantum Computing Could Remake Chemistry," appears in the March 15 issue of Scientific American. She credits her Ph.D. advisor, Professor Amir Hoveyda, with recognzing "the value of combining experimental research with theoretical research." Dr. Garcia is the Senior Manager for Quantum Applications, Algorithms and Theory at IBM Research.
In Memoriam: Chia-Kuang (Frank) Tsung
The Chemistry Department mourns the passing of our colleague and friend Chia-Kuang (Frank) Tsung. A virtual memorial service in honor of Professor Tsung will be held on January 30th at 7:00 pm. If you are interested in attending, please send an email to Dale Mahoney for additional information and a link to the service.
NSF Grant Awarded to BC Researchers
With the support of NSF Division of Chemistry through the Molecular Foundations for Biotechnology (MFB) Solicitation, Professors Abhishek Chatterjee, Eranthie Weerapana (Department of Chemistry) and Tim van Opijnen (Department of Biology) will develop technology to study how pathogenic bacteria adapt when infecting animals and develop resistance to antibiotic treatment, a defining challenge of our time. This technology will enable the characterization of the proteomic changes in pathogenic bacteria in physiologically relevant live-animal infection models. Such studies have been traditionally challenging due to the difficulty of isolating bacterial cells (or its cellular components) from infected animal tissue. The research team will develop a genetically encoded technology for selectively tagging proteins made in the bacterial cells, which will enable their efficient isolation from the infection site. In addition, the precise protein labeling technology developed here will be further exploited to synthesize homogeneous antibody-drug conjugates, a highly promising class of biotherapeutics being used to treat challenging diseases like cancer.
Phase II Funding Approved for the Center for Genetically Encoded Materials
The NSF Center for Chemical Innovation (CCI) program recently approved the phase II funding for the Center for Genetically Encoded Materials (C-GEM; https://gem-net.net/). The research team, which includes Professor Abhishek Chatterjee, is working on repurposing the translational apparatus to establish a fundamentally new form of chemical matter – sequence-defined chemical polymers. Combining computational and experimental approaches, C-GEM is repurposing nature’s protein biosynthesis machinery – the ribosome and it’s associated translation factors – to biosynthesize genetically encoded, sequence-defined chemical polymers with unprecedented functions and activities. The Chatterjee lab will contribute to this challenge by developing novel aminoacyl-tRNA synthetases that charge novel monomers structurally distinct from their natural substrates. The $20 million Phase II funding will support the Center's research over the next five years.
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Professors Jeffery Byers and Dunwei Wang Join NSF Center for Integrated Catalysis
Professors Jeffery Byers and Dunwei Wang join a team of scientists, led by UCLA Professor Paula Diaconescu, to form the NSF Center for Integrated Catalysis. Funded by the NSF Center for Chemical Innovation with a $1.8 million dollar award over a 3-year period to develop chemistry to create “synthetic plastics by using abundant feedstocks in a single reactor using spatially separated and temporally switchable catalysts.” The expected scientific impact of this project will reach the catalysis community and chemical industry with applications based on a new paradigm in chemical catalysis. Professors Chong Liu, UCLA, Loi Do, University of Houston, and Alex Miller, UNC Chapel Hill, round out the interdisciplinary team of organometallic chemists and material scientists.
BC Chemical Biologists Win Ono Pharma Breakthrough Science Initiative Award
A collaborative proposal of chemical biologists Eranthie Weerapana and Jianmin Gao has won a Breakthrough Science Initiative Award from the Ono Pharma Foundation. This award provides funding of $900,000 in direct costs over 3 years. The grant will support efforts by the Gao and Weerapana Labs to interrogate the cell-surface proteome with novel phage libraries. The goal is to use chemically modified phage display as a platform to identify and therapeutically target cell-surface proteins unique to cancer cells.
The Ono Pharma Breakthrough Science Initiative Awards Program is a competitive Awards program that supports high-risk and high-reward science research projects, which have the potential to lead to innovative discoveries with therapeutic potential.
Graduate Admissions News
The Department welcomes applications for our graduate program on a rolling basis. Scientists from all backgrounds with a BS/BA/Masters degree who can join our department this Fall or the Spring semester of 2021 are encouraged to apply. INTERNATIONAL APPLICANTS: Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, it is advised that you regularly check TOEFL and IELTS testing sites to monitor the exam availability and, when possible, make appointments as soon as possible. ALL APPLICANTS: GRE general and subject exams are recommended, but not required.
All applications will be given full consideration without reference to GRE scores; this includes both the general test and Chemistry subject test scores. Application materials and questions should be sent to Dale Mahoney.
Recent Alum Dr.Gabriel Lovinger named a Reaxys PhD Prize Finalist
Dr. Gabriel Lovinger, a recent graduate of Professor James Morken's Group, has been named a finalist for the Reaxys PhD Prize 2020. Created in 2010 by Elsevier, the Reaxys PhD prize recognizes the inventive contributions of early career research scientists from around the globe. Dr. Lovinger is being honored for his work "Catalytic Enantioselective Multi-Component Reactions: Development and Study of Conjunctive Couplings," which was completed during his time as a graduate student. The 45 finalists are invited to attend the Reaxys Prize Symposium, to be held virtually this fall, where 3 finalists will be selected as 2020 Prize winners. Currently Dr. Lovinger is an NIH Postdoctoral Fellow in Professor Eric Jacobsen's group, Harvard University.
GRADUATE ADMISSIONS UPDATE
INTERNATIONAL APPLICANTS: Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, it is advised that you regularly check TOEFL and IELTS testing sites to monitor the exam availability and, when possible, make appointments as soon as possible.
ALL APPLICANTS: GRE general and subject exams are recommended, but not required.
Chemistry Faculty Support #shutDownAcademia
Dear Chemistry Community,
The recent killings of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, and Ahmaud Arbery, in addition to the treatment of Christian Cooper, serve as stark reminders of the unjust and unfair treatment of black members of our community. Unfortunately, this treatment is too commonplace in our society and the biases that lead to it are not absent in the sciences nor in this department.
Recently, an op-ed masquerading as a scientific article was authored by T. Hudlicky and was briefly published in Angewandte Chemie. In addition to many factual errors, the article espoused viewpoints that are overtly racist and sexist, and that are hurtful to many of our students and faculty. The Chemistry Faculty condemn these viewpoints. The clear bias and lack of appreciation for diversity in the sciences is counter to the values of our Department. We believe that diversity in the sciences is vital for achieving excellence and that an inclusive culture strengthens our research programs.
When it comes to matters of discrimination in the sciences, either explicit or implicit, we can always make progress in bettering our actions. In that vein, and in respect for the #ShutDownSTEM, #ShutDownAcademia, and #Strike4BlackLives effort (https://www.shutdownstem.com), we invite you to spend time tomorrow reflecting on ways the department might act to eliminate racism within our community and to share them with us.
Professor Jeffery A. Byers, Professor Abhishek Chatterjee, Professor Jianmin Gao, Professor Amir Hoveyda, Professor Shih-Yuan Liu, Professor David L. McFadden, Professor Udayan Mohanty, Professor James P. Morken, Professor Jia Niu, Professor Marc L. Snapper, Professor Chai-Kuang (Frank) Tsung, Professor Matthias Waegele, Professor Dunwei Wang, Professor Masayuki Wasa, Professor Eranthie Weerapana, Professor X. Peter Zhang
Professor Jianmin Gao Receives 2020 Morrissey College Graduate School of Arts and Sciences Faculty Teaching/Mentoring Award
In recognition of his significant contributions to graduate students in the Department of Chemistry, Professor Jianmin Gao is the 2020 Morrissey College Graduate School of Arts & Sciences Faculty Teaching and Mentoring Awardee. This distinction recognizes faculty for their excellence as a teacher and mentor. Professor Gao has also served as the Department's Graduate Program Director. To learn more about Professor Gao and his research, please visit the Gao Research website.
The Chemistry Department Welcomes Dr. Huiqing Jane Zhou to the Department
Dr. Huiqing Jane Zhou will be joining the Chemistry Department this summer. Currently a Postdoctoral Scholar at the University of Chicago working jointly in the research groups of Professors Bryan Dickinson and Chuan He, she earned her doctoral degree at Duke University. A chemical biologist, Dr. Zhou's research will focus on chemical biology approaches to probe regulations by RNA chemical modifications.
Chemistry Graduate Students Score Well in NSF Graduate Research Fellowship Competition
Ms. Qiwen Su, a graduate student in Professor Jia Niu's research group, has been awarded a Graduate Resarch Fellowship from the National Science Foundation (NSF). This highly competitive fellowship program recognizes and provides 3 years of support to outstanding graduate students. Ms. Su received the award for her project "CRISPR-mediated Intracellular Directed Evolution of RNA Aptamers." For more information on the research being conducted in the Niu Research Group, please visit their website.
Professor Udayan Mohanty's graduate student, Mr. Yang Wang, reached the semi-finalist stage in the competition for his project "All-atom Structure Based Model of Group II Intron Dynamics with Explicit Treatment of Electrostatics and Mobile Ions." To learn about Professor Mohanty's research, visit his website.
Dr. Junwei Lucas Bao to Join the Chemistry Department
The Chemistry Department is excited to announce that Dr. Junwei Lucas Bao will be joining the faculty this summer. A computational chemist, Dr. Bao's research program will use computational techniques to gain insight about chemical kinetics and dynamics for the study of problems which relate to catalysis, energy, environment and sustainability. He earned his Ph.D. at the University of Minnesota and is currently a postdoctoral researcher at Princeton University in Professor Emily Carter's group.
Chemistry Department Awards Graduate Fellowships
The Chemistry Department recently announed the awarding of Chemistry Graduate Fellowships to four outstanding doctoral students. They are (from left to right followed by their adviser) Yejin Chang (Professor Masayuki Wasa), Yucheng Mu (Professor Amir Hoveyda), Wenjian Wang (Professor Jianmin Gao) and Jingru Luo (Professor Dunwei Wang).
NSF CAREER Grant Awarded to Professor Jia Niu
An NSF CAREER Grant has been awarded to Professor Jia Niu in support of the project "Radical Cascade-Driven Polymerization and Depolymerization." Aimed at supporting early career faculty, this award totals $675,000 over a 5-year period. To read more about Professor Niu's research, visit his group website.